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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#148: The Lease I Can Do

Most of us at one time or another will live in an apartment building. Whether you live in a dorm while at college, or you live in a high-rise in Manhattan, sharing a wall or two with your neighbors certainly keeps things interesting. And living in such close proximity to other people has its pros and cons — you’re never too far from help if you need it, but you’re also never too far from the party your downstairs neighbors seem to throw every weekend.

What are some of your fondest (or least fond) memories of apartment living? Use these five prompts to explore what it’s really like to live in an apartment building — or just a little too close to your neighbors for comfort.

This week's prompts

Write about two neighbors who cannot stand each other.

Sad – 43 stories

Write a story involving a noise complaint.

Sad – 45 stories

Include a character in your story that is often in an apartment building, but doesn’t actually live there.

High School – 38 stories

Write about a couple touring an empty apartment they might rent.

Narrative – 27 stories

Write about an apartment building being demolished.

Sad – 42 stories

Stories

“Night Fire” by Maureen MacLennan

Submitted to Contest #148

Night Fire The memory of the acrid smoke seemed to hang in the March air, and the sounds of that night lingered in my heart. It was nearly impossible for me to still hear or smell either, I knew that. A mind has its own recall though. My ears picked up the slowing of tires on the tarmac behind my post. Everyone who called themselves human was drawn in by misfortune, a fact of life on this planet. If it was on the news you’d shake your head sadly, your finger hovering on the remote. If it was in your neighborhood you could grab some frien...

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“This must be a mistake” by Benjamin Togate

Submitted to Contest #148

The force of the ball pulses through the whole building. Like an earthquake is happening, grandmas china bursts, family pictures tear from the wall and the whole family screams in horror. “They are here!” the father yells. His eyes shoot across the room rapidly. He is scared but tries to contain himself, tries to appear strong. His duty as a father is to protect his family. They were not supposed to be here this quick. They said they’d still have time to move. This must be a mistake. Or was it his mistake to stay? Was it too late now? Wo...

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“McKenna Boarding House, Established 1895 ” by Scott Dutkus

Submitted to Contest #148

John McKenna stood looking towards Prospect Park, straight down 12th Street. His mind exploded with memories starting with his grandfather Patrick teaching him to ride his first bike, to coming home from school proudly showing his mother his grades, to watching his father marching away as he left for Britain, only to die during the Battle of the Bulge, and finally 4 months ago when his mother passed in her sleep, leaving him as the current owner of the small apartment building. Now, the red brick structure stood empty. Well, ...

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“Permanent Residents” by Kelly L

Submitted to Contest #148

Note: This story mentions both suicide and murder.Caroline did not mind the quiet so much, but Arthur hated it. Vivian had mentioned that she was getting bored with no tenants around. Ewell had said nothing. The kids, twins named Hazel and Haskell, managed to make their own fun. They chased the mice that scurried down the empty hallways, looked inside the walls at treasures people had hidden and sometimes played in the empty rooms. Still yesterday, Caroline had found them sitting on the stairs in the second floor landing staring out the...

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“The Intrusion” by Hope Linter

Submitted to Contest #148

Randy hadn’t quite awoken, when he heard the sound of glass breaking. He blinked at the clock, it was just after seven-thirty in the morning. He slammed the pillow over his head and smothered the ill sense it was in his living room. After a late night at the law office, he’d downed a glass of a Scotch whiskey, while mind numbing on Netflix. His mouth was dry and his head was pounding. A gluey residue clamped his dry lips together. He heard loud knocking at his door, and flinched, when he heard Molly his neighbour shoutin...

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“Trouble at 4B” by Sandra R

Submitted to Contest #148

Frank Leary, 68 years of age, lived in apartment 4B in a drowsy, decrepit building on the corner of Gaston and Avery. With most of his days spent reading encyclopedias and passing judgement on pedestrians who spoiled the urban view from his window, he found peace in the silent company of his one-bedroom apartment at the very end of an otherwise vacant hallway. Short, stocky, and with a figure resembling a crouchi...

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“Call of the Mild” by Rosalie Chamberlain

Submitted to Contest #148

Paige went with the defense contract story this time. That one was always a safe bet. The poor leasing office clerk looked utterly baffled as to why the Department of Homeland Security would need robotic hippopotamuses to fend off enemy submarines. Still, no minimum-wage worker wanted to tangle with the federal government just to appease the crotchety man in 31B who couldn’t hear Wheel of Fortune over the tinny braying of a computerized ungulate. The freckled twenty-something shrugged and 31B stomped back ...

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“The Shadows in 4A” by Charlene Aikens

Submitted to Contest #148

When Sam moved into apartment 4A, he was hoping for a fresh start. He was hoping to leave his past behind him and really start to live – not just exist. The west facing windows allowed him a front row seat to some of the most beautiful sunsets he had ever seen. They were almost as beautiful as the ones he witnessed while overseas. Overseas for his deployment - in which case the sunsets were the only magic around. It was never his aspiration to join the military, but it was in his blood. He didn’t want to be the one to snuff out the torch tha...

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“The Re-Birth Of Lost Memories” by Stephen B. Allen

Submitted to Contest #148

The Re-Birth Of Lost Memories: By Stephen B. Allen (Steve Baldyga)Every instance when the scoop of the excavator enthusiastically tore into the rubble of 16 Seaside Drive, it felt as if another memory—fully forgotten and buried so very long ago—was exhumed from its grave to resonate within my mind! For the old (one hundred-fifty some odd years it had existed on this earth) three-story Victorian-style house being readily demolished just happened to be the site of the very first apartment I ever had of my own.Standing upon the sidewalk wh...

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“Construction Project X” by Danelle Miller

Submitted to Contest #148

“Hey boss, James, a member of the team of renovators says, walking towards him, “Is this place really up to bar with renovating, because I really don’t want to waste time to start when everything in that apartment looks like it’s falling apart.” Tray wondered if he had totally missed something when he spoke to the landlord about this apartment complex. “James!” He shouts when he realizes that he has completely messed up, hoping his boyfriend doesn’t kill him when he finds out and stopping James who was just walking into the apartment buildin...

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“Turning the Page” by Andre LeFosse

Submitted to Contest #148

Leroy, is everything ready to go? I want this thing ready to blow right at the end of my interview” Dan released the button on the radio and turned to this publicist. “A building implosion would make great television, would it not?” “I think it would make amazing television Mr. Irons”, his publicist said as she returned a text on her phone. “For the last time, call me Dan.” The radio beeped and buzzed. “We’re ready to go as soon as you give the order Dan,” A voice said from the radio. “Thank you L...

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“The Veranda” by Jenny McClish

Submitted to Contest #148

You only hear about haunted houses. Blockbuster horror movies take place in large Victorian houses or creepy cabins in the middle of nowhere. Everybody knows that. Nobody’s ever been willed an apartment in some lower middle-class neighborhood by a mysterious aunt. Rich families with old secrets don’t hire nannies to watch peculiar children in apartment buildings. That’s not the kind of setting an audience wants to look at for two hours; it’s just not good story telling. Besides, a proper haunted location needed to be old, or built on top of ...

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“A Stanger In My Own City” by Eileen Donovan

Submitted to Contest #148

If I weren’t standing in front of the Cort Theater in the middle of 48th St., I’d scream. That thought ran through my head every time I came out from a darkened theater into the pinpoints of sunlight that found their way through the surrounding buildings down to the sidewalk. The bus that would take me north to Orange County was leaving in ten minutes. There was no way I could get from 48th St. and 7th Avenue to Port Authority Bus Terminal on 42nd St. and 8th Avenue in ten minutes. Especially through the flood of outpouring matinee theater-...

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“The lease you did” by Karen Ann

Submitted to Contest #148

My phone was ringing, but I didn't feel like answering it, when I saw who was calling. Sheila is a busy-body neighbor, who seems to know everyone and their business, the good, the bad and the ugly. More than half of the tenants are Spanish, a few Black people and the others Caucasian. Sheila was under the impression; she was not liked by some of the Spanish community. I didn't take the time to listen to her convoluted explanation of something that had occurred years before. I simply told her, " I really would rather not get involved in other...

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“Staring Down the Barrel of a Wrecking Ball” by Trip Aske

Submitted to Contest #148

I just don't understand. I did my best. Come rain, snow, wind, and even the freak tornado of '84, I stood tall and protected the people from the elements. I've seen thousands of faces pass through my halls, and sure some have been sad or angry but never with me. Well, maybe a few with me, but most of those were actually the plumber's fault. (Larry? Barry? Some white-bread name ending in -arry) Yet I wager that plumber is sound asleep tonight in another apartment building, one with those hip, white stone walls and a Jamba Juice or somethi...

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$250

Prize money

195

Contest entries

90

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Jun 03, 2022 EST

Won by S.K. Wulf 🏆

Title: Two Stubborn Women

Submissions must be between 1,000 - 3,000 words and will be approved and published on Reedsy Prompts within 7 days of the contest closing.

Read the full terms & conditions or check out the FAQ if you have any questions!

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